Cohabitation Agreement

The best way for cohabiting couples to protect themselves is to draw up a cohabitation agreement or a living together agreement as they are sometimes known, we can do this for you for a fixed fee of £199.00.

Cohabitation Agreement

Cohabitation Agreement Service for £199.00

With more couples now opting not to get married, it is essential that they protect themselves in the event of a relationship breakdown, and obtain a cohabitation or living together agreement, as couples who live together have very little legal rights should they eventually split up.

There is no such thing as a common law husband or wife in English law and generally cohabited are treated as two strangers, if any dispute ends up in court.

A cohabitation agreement sets out what will happen to the couples finances and assets such as the family home, in the event of a breakup and will save unnecessary arguments and legal fees in the future. It is in effect an insurance policy against splitting up.

Common law man and wife.

There is no such thing as a common law marriage in English law and unlike married couples, the law is very strict as to how assets are divided. For example, if you are not on the deeds to your family home, you may actually not be entitled to any settlement whatsoever, unless you can prove you have materially contributed to mortgage and other payments that add value to the property.

You will not be able to claim any maintenance for yourself and even if you have children, you may only be allowed to occupy the family home until the children leave school. So as you can see, by not marrying, you are leaving yourself in a very vulnerable position and the ONLY way to protect yourself is to make a cohabitation agreement that can be enforced.

A cohabitation agreement is a legally binding contract between a couple and can be enforced in court if one party decides not to uphold the agreement.

Our experienced family law solicitors will prepare your cohabitation agreement based on the agreement you have reached. They will send a draft to you and subject to any amendments, you will receive your agreement with instructions on how to put it into legal effect within 7 days of your purchase.

You can then relax and enjoy your relationship knowing that you are not going to be disadvantaged if you break up in the future.

If you would like any advice about what should go into a cohabitation agreement, give our advisors a call today on 01793 384 029 and they will be able to go into your individual circumstances in the more detail.